Adelaide O-Bahn - Official Introduction including features and advantages (1988)

Official Introduction to the Adelaide O-Bahn by the South Australian Passenger Transport Board. Made about 1988, it covers how the kerb guided busway works, advantages and construction. With Commentary.

[@alessiomarin1218]

My right ear enjoyed this.

[@djackmanson]

I've sold O-Bahns to Brockway, Ogdenville and North Haverbrook!

[@BusaRider86]

David Jackmanson in Moe, Gippsland, Australia - I thought the same thing....I think the generic rock music at the end scared them off....

[@californiahummus]

Is there a chance the track could bend? Not on your life my Hindu friend!

[@grantmccutcheon3078]

I've heard those things are awfully loud. It glides as softly as a cloud.

[@pepelemoko01]

@@grantmccutcheon3078 Another time the Simpsons saw into the future, monorails have been scrapped everywhere. They saw trump as president too.

[@MarkHenstridge]

@@californiahummus Notice how they have reduced the speed on the busway?

[@luketansell]

I love how they're testing the bus hitting bricks at 100kmh, and the whole group is like a metre away haha

[@GTA40120]

Could of been a recipe for disaster if the test was a failure

[@AlonsoRules]

that's what happened in Canberra a few years later with the hospital demolition disaster

[@MarkHenstridge]

If those bricks were placed on the left side of the track instead of the right on that bend there would have been a different outcome, all the force of the bus was on the opposite side to the bricks.

[@docdaneeka3424]

also the brake test: 'perfectly safe' in peak hour to run with 20 second intervals' imagine a peak hour bus choc full of people standing hitting the brakes like that at 100 km/h.

[@Hinderz]

@@docdaneeka3424 it’s been running for 30 plus years now. The biggest issue is car drivers turning onto the track and getting stuck.

[@DouglasDC10.30]

My mum lived in Modbury when the O-Bahn began operation, and she actually got to test ride it before it opened!

[@ThomasCorfield]

There's a lot of debate about when this film was made. I can say with some certainty that it was DEFINATELY before last Thursday. I know that because I had to return a library book.

[@benos4x4adventures49]

I have 10 yrs on the Obarhn with serco. Awesome company great people. Miss those days 😪

[@bryce6744]

Adelaide was light years ahead of other major Australian cities. I hope the city can experience another boom that helps it catch up to Perth and Brisbane.

[@southaussiegarbo2054]

I i hope other cities can have a boom to catch upto what we do for recycling. 😂. South aust dont send our recycling to landfill other states are because they think we dont have recyclers in australia when we do

[@andthefunkybunch1466]

I ride the obahn every day and I love the hell out of it but I got a heck of a chuckle at the "little to no pollution" and then another one at the "silent" comment. Tell that to people along the line *wwhhiiiiirrrrrrrrrnnnnggg*

[@user-jt1jv8vl9r]

Imagine if they used electric buses that could charge their batteries as they travelled along the guided ‘rails’.

[@southaussiegarbo2054]

They are looking at it

[@allesineen1793]

literally a train on roads, oh wait-

[@charles8557]

@@allesineen1793 do you know how much a train costs? Lmao

[@allesineen1793]

@@charles8557 yes

[@davidschnufflebutt5018]

My right ear loved this video

[@MarkWhich]

My left ear didn't hear a thing :(

[@Jothsal]

It's because of mono audio i guess

[@user-rs1990]

The SG280H buses were O-Bahn equipped some time in 1992/93. 10:41 - I have that leaflet and I've scanned it too!

[@Anthrox]

o barn is a great system I use it every workday

[@SuperMattb17]

Didnt really take off - one run north east of the city. I think there are only a handful of cities that use the o-bahn. I did hear there were major issues sourcing new buses after the originals were retired?

[@rjl110919581]

GREAT SERVICE VIDEO

[@Worldseries601]

I think this was made in the 1990s. There's a lot of evidence in the video that shows it's in the mid-late 90s.

[@southaussiegarbo2054]

Yep its the 90s

[@snowleopard9749]

There is a VR Commodore, which dates it to July 1993 at the earliest.

[@domeperruzza]

Fantastic, Perth needs something like this, because now is nothing...

[@MarkHenstridge]

Don't do it, rail is far more superior. Australia has an aging population and more seniors are using gophers, trains can accommodate many buses only one, 2 at a maximum

[@michaeleverett1479]

The Mandurah (south) and Joondalup (north) train lines are so popular in Perth despite them running in the median of the South and North freeways respectively. Trains on the Mandurah and Joondalup lines can travel at a maximum speed of 130 km/h while averaging at speeds of 72 km/h - 80 km/h with a massive station spacing of 2 km - 7 km. All the train stations on these Mandurah and Joondalup lines have lots of park and ride spaces with fully integrated bus interchanges to transfer seamlessly between trains to feeder bus or cross city bus and vice versa.

[@NebraskaGonvilleJones]

Light rail is a far better option

[@Lysken]

And they're updating it again...

[@Jothsal]

8:38 a similar model of that trolley is used in Quito - Ecuador since 1995

[@greathornedowl1783]

this is not 1988 there is VR Holden Commodore at 1:13 which came out in 1993.

[@pommygeezer9309]

The Westpac Tower was built in 1988.. you can see it under construction early on in this video.

[@greathornedowl1783]

footage must have been taken from another video cause that car didn't exist then.

[@greatape5305]

Proud Neanderthal the file footage is from '88, the video was edited later on obviously.

[@tcpnetworks]

There was a 1994 Toyota Celica and a 93 Camry in there too. This is mid 90's.

[@_klawodu5976]

1986 in Essen, Germany -> 1988 in Adelaide, Australia -> today only in Essen-Kray, Germany. And Adelaide, too ??

[@user-jt1jv8vl9r]

It’s a useful idea. They have a guided busway near Cambridge that must be based on this system.

[@james-5560]

38 years ago they did this in Birmingham, it was named Tracline_65 kzbin.info/www/bejne/jZ7FXnyLi5ucp6c

[@BoringRevolution]

I wonder if Elon Musk can use some of this technology in his tunnels?

[@kwokwing7502]

I like bus , because it is convenience to access by roadside and I do not have to go up and down for the metro rail or MTR ; I dislike bus because it is set to a maximum speed of only 70 kmh in Hong Kong ( time consuming for long journey ) and bus accident is not uncommon. This system seems to be a crossover of both . After all , it has been using for over 30 years , so there must be some very good reasons that it still runs.

[@tysonspratt8857]

I think the cost layout was a lot so keeping the system running as is happens to be easier, if they want to change it to rail or tram they would need to extend it to existing services which would require even more work as for example Adelaides trains stop 2-3 kms from where the obhan starts and that would be extensive tunneling, the tram might be workable as it terminates closer and can utilise the roads but even then that is more cost. In larger denser cities the various metro systems beat the obahn hands down due to speed, capacity and efficiency, also when it was built it had 2 advantages it followed the Torrens river so that is already accessible land and it went to at that time only lightly developed land which meant property acquisition was minimal sadly since then it has since dramatically filled in, there is talk of it being extended out further as land was left and I think priority lanes were going to due the last mile stuff so to speak. the Obahn is good but it really only works in a unique set of circumstances, you wont see a something like this in HK as HK is too densely populated and lacks the land to implement it.

[@laureane5454]

I thought the bus traction were hybrid. On city the motor was used, on the O-Bahn you could shutdown the bus and be propelled by magnetic tracks. Magnetic propulsion for some buses is in use at Porto Alegre/Brazil, India, USA, Japan... Don't know how the use of tons and miles of concrete and regular buses can be environmental friendly. Bus corridors much less costy are in use in Germany, Brasilia, Curitiba, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Argentina, China... with the same 100km/h ou even more and also with electric buses.

[@JacGoudsmit]

Now let's put the bricks on the OUTSIDE of the curve :)

[@coinman1972]

Very cool. How old is this film?

[@squidwaan]

1998

[@Jothsal]

1988

[@gde1989]

yep, VR commodore in one of the shots. Released 1994/95

[@theytwatcher950]

VR was 1993 released

[@theytwatcher950]

Also the Camry at 9:59. It was released in 1991, but the blue one was around 1993-1994

[@Worldseries601]

Nah it's definitely mid-late 90s. 1. There's no mention of the State Transport Authority. The video was made by the Passenger Transport Board, which was concieved in 1994. 2. There are some clips with buses carrying the TransAdelaide logo, along with a pamphlet that was definitely made in Transadelaide days.. Again, Transadelaide was formed in 1994 along with the PTB. 3. Mentioning the pamphlet in question, that was published in April 1995. Another clue. The evidence is there.

[@laralongdog1983]

it opened either late 80s or like '90/'91

[@lawrencer6328]

Interesting. The shot of the Adelaide Skyline shows the State Bank logo (you can kinda make out the huge white letters) which was til 94? So it’s likely 94 based on point 1.

[@relacser]

The breakdown vehicle had STA branding.

[@HappyfoxBiz]

I'll take 4 o-bahns and 3 bridges. I hope they sell to the public

[@wtfmimshag]

1988: We need better mass transportation, old city designs dont work 2021: let's add some turning lanes on portrush rd

[@tacky4237]

GENIUS! Surely it will improve the city right? Right?

[@hseochin]

I want to see a future O-Bahn system with much higher speed buses..on the 1 hand there exists conventional rail trains of 160 to 300 km/h, so 100 km/h on O-Bahn is too slow realistically. Daimler should come up with high end Citaros & Travegos with 160 to 200 km/h road speed capabilities for automated track guided operations...not too much to ask for especially since high speed rail train-sets are so much bigger & heavier vehicles yet they can manage such speeds so certainly the idea of a truely high speed bus & coach will have to be a realisable reality as well !

[@tysonspratt8857]

Speed isn't really the issue, the big problem is capacity buses cannot hold the amount of people a train or tram can.

[@allesineen1793]

@@tysonspratt8857 frequency negates that issue

[@demsyciu]

So it's basically a Tamiya car in real life

[@AlonsoRules]

Los Angeles has developed a similar system

[@vansky1459]

It's a great system Anthony.

[@user-jt1jv8vl9r]

Rail lines only needing maintenance every century? Are you sure about that?

[@user-jt1jv8vl9r]

Craig F. Thompson sorry to be pedantic, but 10-30 years is not once a century.

[@jimr8687]

This was obviously not made in 1988. The O'Bahn is well and truly established and there are VR Commodores in the footage. This was made post 94/95.

[@allaussiegarbo4274]

I was thinking the same thing lol

[@allaussiegarbo4274]

I sore the vr I was like thats not right it cant be 1988 the vr commodore didn't get released until 1993

[@Dave-cx1tz]

Did the name change from trans Adelaide to Adelaide metro because it was too offensive ?

[@wellingtoncommuter]

I don't know sorry ... perhaps another viewer can comment.

[@greatape5305]

oh no, some dingaling put the Mercedes badge on upside-down! (6:35)

[@danielrose1392]

Everything is upside down down under. The sign is right way up seen from germany :P

[@BuggSmasher]

It's a sign of the satanic panic in the city of Churches, that's Adelaide !

[@stipenazorin2096]

what evidence ?

[@tacky4237]

So THAT is what the city used to look like, its still tiny but its much smaller back then.

[@Omega9935]

What is the sense of this? Why didn’t they just build a road for the buses?

[@james124___2]

Because that slower at the speed they can go it’s too dangerous

[@xpxp2839]

Adelaide has the best urban planning in the world! a Sim City in real world !

[@joebidensr.9244]

The city itself, but the suburbs were poorly set out for roads. South Road is an absolute nightmare now and will cost at least a billion to fix a small section with a tunnel. It's a pity that there wasn't another Colonel William Light, then this would not of happened.

[@EarlJohn61]

And then you get the suburb that is supposed to honour Colonel Light... Colonel Light Gardens... It's an absolute stuff up & an embarrassment in a single suburb...

[@MarkHenstridge]

Should have been a rail corridor but no stupid bus instead.

[@michaeleverett1479]

The O'bahn/ guided bus or BRT is bus industry rubbish and a railway done on the cheap.

[@ethanlamoureux5306]

If this is such a great system, why is it you never hear about it being used elsewhere? I suspect this is all a bunch of hype to sell something that doesn’t work as well as they say it does.

[@captainawesomesk6285]

I catch a bus that goes along this route every weekday and i can vouch for how much time it saves and how it's really convenient

[@WideOpenSenses]

I guess, in most urban areas, you rather extend your existing infrastructure, i.e. the road and rail network, instead of introducing a completely new way of transportation. btw, Adelaide is not the only place with guided buses. For more examples, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guided_bus

[@lucasretallack9540]

Nah it's actually amazing. It is used more than all of the train lines combined!

[@GloveSlapnz]

rail just isint as flexible though, it can't jump off the rails and head to a stop in the middle of town, New route require so much more planning for a train. They both have benefits and I absolutely love trains. But this seems like a great inter suburb transport system. Although this video is so full of shit lmao I'd never believe it was 'infinitly more flexible than a train service'

[@michaeleverett1479]

@@GloveSlapnz, The O'bahn video is full of rubbish statements that are too good to be true. Bus proponents have an obsession with flexibility, door to door service and vandalism but what a you need is high capacity, frequency, speed and legibility for a backbone public transport route. Only heavy rail such as suburban or metro rail can achieve high capacity, frequency, speed and legibility. The inflexibility of trains with steel wheels on steel rail is a good thing to create a simple public transport system with well connected corridors. These train stations can act as residential, commercial or industrial centers with transit orientated development while encouraging active transport such as walking, running ,cycling and connectivity to cross town and feeder buses or trams. As the O'bahn bus exits the concrete guideway, it becomes a normal slow road bus just like the rest of Adelaide's useless road buses.

[@holmesdan1]

late 80s is right

[@user-hm2gb6pm6b]

Interchange Interchange Interchange Clover leaf Radial Radial Circular Elliptical Hyperbolic Interchange What sharmila did you understand interchange ??? Parks are closed So are jobs ?

[@Jigsjigz]

Its a shame it never caught on, i wonder why.

[@Jigsjigz]

@Craig F. Thompson would be good across states i think like florida etc... could link up the country so much better... hopefully tesla is working on a coach! :P

[@Jigsjigz]

@Craig F. Thompson Hahaha well trhere are interstate highways across it they could easily attach another lane for this type of thing.

[@sharkheadism]

Too expensive

[@Jigsjigz]

@@sharkheadism Here in the uk they are spending over 80 billion on a rail lane HS2...

[@tysonspratt8857]

I love how this video dismissed how Adelaide ripped up its sprawling tram network which contributed to the congestion problem as it forced more people into cars. Anyway the Obahn is alright and is fit for purpose but it only caters to on section of Adelaide and sadly buses can't reach the capacity requirements say that of Tram or Trains so the outlay for a new obahn system in most places is not going to be workable unless the said places population stagnates to say late 80s adelaide population levels and even then the cost layout its probably better to integrate with a rail or tram service.

[@peterdutton4083]

I don't see a rail system along the Torrens ever happening. This is the best we're gonna get, but damn; it's pretty fucking good. I'm about to leave my house, walk for 3 minutes, and take the obahn right to Currie Street. Fucking fantastic.

[@EarlJohn61]

issues with the sprawling tram network: 1) during the first world war maintenance of the trams and track was delayed to allow for more money to be spent on armed forces. ( Remember that almost all of the South Australian government's income is from the federal government. ) After WW1 they had to make up the shortfall and it was a struggle, then came the depression. Oops! 2) during WW2 again needed maintenance was delayed, on the already stressed system. 3) then Premier, Tom Playford feared a repeat depression and tried to insulate SA by bringing in heavy industries in the form of car manufacturers. So he saw a double win. Reduce the maintenance costs by removing the tram tracks & convince the Auto manufacturers that the state would NEED lots of cars. Wether you agree with his politics or not it was a very shrewd move. (I'm not sure how much the state had to pay the manufacturers each year... But I'll say that as soon as the state stopped paying they left. Without paying anything back!)

[@MrGeocidal]

They're comparing the costs against heavy rail but it only offers the capacity of light rail.

[@southaussiegarbo2054]

It was made in 1998 or 99 bc the obahn opend back in the late 90s

[@Will-oz9dr]

3:45 PEMBROKE SCHOOL

[@RTYalex]

Prince Alfred College not Pembroke

[@Will-oz9dr]

Tunnuss before PAC as the scene just changed 🙃

[@looneybatemanscotch2579]

Dont come to adelaide, too many people here already

[@james-5560]

We had this in Birmingham UK 38 years ago under the name Tracline_65 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracline_65 see the video here kzbin.info/www/bejne/jZ7FXnyLi5ucp6c